


All He Wanted

by al_ex_an_d_er_hamiltons



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, How Do I Tag, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, M/M, Romance, s03e13
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-28 03:41:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19803979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/al_ex_an_d_er_hamiltons/pseuds/al_ex_an_d_er_hamiltons
Summary: David and Patrick's relationship, from each of their perspectives, leading up to David's birthday





	All He Wanted

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written fic in literal years, and this is my first post to AO3 so bear with me if this isn't good. I just started SC recently and couldn't stop thinking about what was going on in their minds as they grew closer. Not beta'd or anything, sorry for any mistakes. 
> 
> Mostly canon but a few fabrications of my own thrown in to keep things interesting.

**All he wanted was to get away for awhile.**

After his most recent, disastrous split from Rachel, Patrick needed to get as far away as possible. When Ray, an old friend of his father’s, offered him a room and a job handling paperwork for his innumerable businesses in Schitt’s Creek, he jumped at it.

It was far away from Montreal. Aside from being acquainted with Ray, he knew no one else there. It was boring, easy work and practically free housing. He could finally focus on himself, and figure out what he really wanted in life.

How he ended up sitting outside a motel in a dark car- having just kissed a man for the first time in his life, more relieved and terrified than he’d ever been- he wasn’t quite sure.

All he knew was that the new owner- sorry, _lessee_ \- of the General Store had walked into the office that day, months ago, and walked out with more than just Patrick’s business card and a blank incorporation form.

He couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment that David Rose charmed him. Despite his lack of real experience in the area, he knew David wasn’t exactly the type of guy he’d found himself surreptitiously checking out in the past. David was ridiculous in all of the ways Patrick himself was sensible. His clothes were impractical. He wasn’t always nice. And he was very crabby if he was tired or hungry. In fact, as much as David disliked babies, he sort of acted like one sometimes.

But somehow, Patrick found himself very much interested in looping his pale fingers between David’s ringed ones, or using his thumb to smooth the wrinkle between his impressive and oft-furrowed brows. 

Maybe it was when he used the word ‘oscillating’ in casual conversation. Or unabashedly stated he didn’t know what ‘batting 1000’ meant. Perhaps it was saying it’s “a general store, but also a very specific store.”

More likely, it was the dozen voicemails he’d received from David, clumsily outlining his business plan and his vision. 

There was a duality to David that he found endearing; his moments of being air-headed and out-of-touch were outnumbered only by moments where he was very clearly the smartest person in the room, and knew it. He was passionate about his business, and beneath all the snarky remarks, there was gentleness and vulnerability that showed itself only in the quietest of moments.

It was impossible to figure out when, exactly, David became the person he wanted to spend all of his time with. 

He was even less sure when he started to believe that, just possibly, David felt the same way about him. 

Possibly it was when David had the slightest hint of a smile on his face when Patrick informed him that no, he didn’t come back to the store to see Alexis.

Or how, on multiple occasions, he noticed David watching him as he worked, and pretending he was just making sure Patrick was stocking product properly when he got caught.

Or when David got flustered when they were talking about the soft launch turning into a semi-firm launch and how it’d better not get hard.

There was also the time during lunch at the cafe that Alexis was bemoaning the lack of eligible romantic prospects in town and David, uncharacteristically optimistic,said, 

“There are a few people in this town who aren’t completely terrible and might be considered eligible bachelors if you know where to look,” while carefully studying the menu as if he’d never seen it before. When Alexis pressed him for specifics, David quickly changed the subject, face flushed as he asked who wanted to split an order of fries.

It was unlikely though, Patrick thought. David was worldly and experienced in all the ways he wasn’t. The little he knew about David’s past relationships all led Patrick to believe that he couldn’t be further from his ‘type.’ So he settled himself within the Coworkers Only box, not entirely satisfied, but happy enough to be near him more often than not.

* * *

**All he wanted was to find a way to keep himself busy.**

And maybe- just maybe- bring some culture to Schitt’s Creek. With the money from the Blouse Barn, and all the time on his hands, David decided to lease the old general store to give himself a new project to focus on.

When Ray’s friend- or maybe employee, or business partner?- had offered to help get the store ready for business, David didn’t expect much more than some paperwork filled out and some help moving boxes.

How he’d ended up sitting in a car, kissing this man in sensible denim, on what would have been the worst birthday of his life, he wasn’t really sure.

All he knew was, when he left Ray’s that day all those months ago, he had the distinct feeling he was carrying more than just a blank form and a business card out with him. 

David wasn't sure when he first started letting himself believe Patrick Brewer might be interested in being more than just coworkers and business partners.

Not that it mattered anyway. Patrick wasn't David's type. He was kind of annoying, and used too many sports references. And he was entirely too cocky for someone with his utter disregard for fashion and good taste. (Not that any of those things stopped David from admiring him on the sly as he worked around the store, his sensible shirts rolled at the sleeve and open at the neck. He was, after all, only human.)

On the other hand, Patrick was intelligent, and could keep up with his cutting humor. He was patient and had the ability to talk David off a ledge when everyone else seemed to be doing their best to push him off. He took care of things David didn’t understand and didn’t really care about, like insurance and profit margins. He made David feel safe and stable, a feeling he had almost forgotten when his life had turned upside down.

Despite Alexis and Stevie's insistence to the contrary, David was sure that-even if Patrick were interested in men- David wouldn't be his type. Patrick was…sweet, and thoughtful, and level-headed. David was not.

But eventually he got the inkling that maybe, just maybe, Patrick didn't find him entirely ridiculous.

It could have been that first day at Ray’s, when he returned to get another form only to find Patrick had already taken care of it, and gently teased him about his voicemails.

Or when Patrick offered to help out with the grants and invest in the store despite hardly knowing him. 

Maybe it was how the back room where Patrick had just been noisily taking inventory suddenly fell silent as Alexis loudly, suggestively asked David how his night with Sebastien Raine had gone. Or how Patrick had then quickly dismissed himself for lunch at the cafe as David told her to please shut up, it wasn't like he enjoyed it, because he'd only slept with him to help their mom in order to maintain his status as her favorite child. 

Maybe it was when Patrick had so generously (and maybe even eagerly?) offered to let him stay over, insisting he protect himself to avoid the same disgusting, licey fate Alexis had met. 

Maybe it was the day they were going to meet an important potential vendor, and Patrick asked David if his outfit was okay, and David responded by saying,

“If by "okay" you mean safe and boring and not very on-brand for the store, but still nice, then yes. Blue is a good color on you."

And then Patrick had teasingly asked David if he thought that he looked handsome in blue, eyes sparkling as he leaned against the counter, arms crossed.

David had narrowed his eyes at him, momentarily wrestling with whether to answer with sincerity or snark. He settled on the latter.

"It suits your pallid complexion. So yes."

Patrick wore a lot more blue from then on. David tried very hard not to notice. Because why would sweet, intelligent, Patrick want to be with someone so damaged from being burned so many times before? It seemed unlikely at best. And David couldn't risk losing his business partner by initiating potentially unwanted advances. So he kept to himself, wondering to himself and working very hard to maintain Professional Boundaries.

This insecure, "does he or doesn't he" space was where David found himself on his birthday, standing in front of the mirror at the motel, trying to decide what to wear to the dinner Patrick had invited him to. Ultimately, he decided on something casual. (Casual for him, anyway.) He also invited Stevie, because Patrick would have told him if he wanted to take him out alone, and he couldn’t bear to let himself think otherwise.

This was the same insecure space Patrick found himself in, an hour later in the bathroom at the Cafe, wondering what else he could have done to put himself out there and let David know how he felt. Or maybe he had made it clear, and he'd overstepped at some point, and David brought Stevie along as a gentle-but-firm nudge back into the Coworkers Only box.Either way, he needed to somehow mask his disappointment and get back out there and give a very good person a halfway decent birthday dinner with his best friend. 

He slid back into the booth and, despite his protests, next thing he knew David was opening his gift and looking at him with the softest, most sincere expression he'd ever seen David make. Hope sprang eternal.

And then Stevie excused herself, and for a moment David and Patrick were both terrified that they'd be sitting there in awkward silence, but it wasn't awkward at all. They talked about the store and its future—their future— and what it might bring. They talked about their worst birthday gifts and what they would do if they had a million dollars. They talked about everything important, and nothing that really mattered. 

Later, boosted by Stevie's insistence that the sentimental gift made their dinner a date, David drummed up the courage and confidence to finally do what he'd secretly wanted to for months, and kissed Patrick.And Patrick didn’t pull away, or seem disgusted, or ask David why he’d done that, but instead thanked him for making it happen. Because even if Patrick found David to be ridiculous, and knew he was damaged goods, he also thought he was worth his time, energy and affection. 

David had kissed Patrick, and he did it because he wanted to. Because despite all of David’s worldly experience, and despite Patrick’s lack not only of experience but also style and taste, David still found him attractive.

So here they found themselves, lightyears away from the lives they had and the people they once were, sitting in a dark car, outside of a crappy motel. All the fears and insecurities, the doubts and second guesses they’d both harbored for months suddenly disappeared without a trace. All they’d really wanted, it turned out,was each other.


End file.
